Normandy: Bayeux War Cemetery and Battle of Normandy Memorial Museum

Located just a few minutes from the Landing Beaches, the Musée Mémorial de la Bataille de Normandie de Bayeux (the Battle of Normandy Memorial Museum in Bayeux) provides a unique and comprehensive history of the combat on Normandy's beaches from June 7 to August 29, 1944. Bayeux was one of the first cities liberated by Allied forces the morning of June 7.

The museum's layout alternates between a chronological account of events and themed spaces. A twenty-five minute archive film, as well as a presentation of war supplies and uniforms, help illustrate those historic weeks.

Visitors will have the opportunity to get a full understanding of all aspects of the battle, which was a decisive vistory in liberating France - and ultimately the rest of Europe - from Nazi rule.

Two rooms, the Overlord and the Eisenhower, demonstrate soldiers' daily lives and weapons.

Outside the museum, armored tanks from both sides are on display.

The Bayeux War Cemetary

The Bayeux War Cemetery is the largest World War II Commonwealth cemetery in France and contains burials brought in from the surrounding districts and from hospitals that were located nearby.

The Bayeux War Cemetery contains 4,144 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 338 of them unidentified. There are also over 500 war graves of other nationalities, the majority of which are German. Of the Commonwealth burials, 3,195 are British and 181 Canadian, as well as several of Australia and New Zealand.

The Bayeux Memorial bears the names of more than 1,800 men of the Commonwealth land forces who died in the early stages of the campaign and have no known grave. They died during the landings in Normandy, during the intense fighting in Normandy itself, and during the advance to the River Seine in August.

Opposite the cemetary stands the Bayeux Memorial to the Missing.

Both the museum and cemetary are located in the southwestern outskirts of Bayeux in Normandy, which lies 24 kilometres northwest of Caen.

The City of Bayeux

Bayeux was largely spared from actual combat during the battle in 1944, though it served as a refuge for those wounded by the bombings and was one of the rare cities in Calvados to remain intact.

A charming medieval city, Bayeux is also known for its tapestries including the famous Bayeux Tapestry, a true masterpiece of the Middle Ages, embroidered with the glory of William the Conqueror. The tapestry has since been classified by UNESCO.